CH 171

The second silence was also horrifying, but it was Gerald instead of the wind that broke the silence, unlike last time.

“Keith, Evert!!”

At that voice, the two began to move as if being repelled.

Even without a clear command, the two quickly understood what the instructions were and they began to pull Remiel away from Sophie and carry him away.

Sophie saw off that leaving figure with a stunned expression.

“Sophie-sama…”

“――――Gerald Forsius.”

The voice, which felt colder and more intense than a freezing snowstorm in winter, called Gerald’s name.

Leaving that earlier “Geragera” aside, it was the first time for the purple star girl to refer to him without honorifics.

However, Gerald could see her anger from her trembling lips and couldn’t respond as usual.

Despite the lack of response, Sophie asked Gerald without a care,

“Between the acts of pointing a blade at a former member of the royal family who was already demoted, and the act of groping on a woman’s chest in public and saying ‘You’re actually a man, aren’t you?’ which of the two is ruder?”

“…”

There was no way Gerald could answer.

From Gerald’s perspective, both actions were unthinkably rude and foolish.

“I’m terribly sorry. We’ll make sure to tell Remiel-sama to never do such a thing again.”

After managing to say that much, the purple star girl laughed.

Even though her mouth barely considered a smile, her green eyes shone with hostility.

“He doesn’t seem to be a person who would listen to someone telling something to him, though?”

Remiel most likely wouldn’t listen. And it wasn’t something that only happened recently either. Remiel had been that kind of person since his childhood.

Remiel’s extraordinary memory and bizarre behavior made him known as “the abnormal second prince,” with many people leaving and having no choice but to leave the royal court because of him.1

“……But Sophie-sama, your actions are too much even if you bear the purple star. The act of pointing a blade toward the second prince is a crime.”

Sophie laughed lightly at Gerald’s remark.

“So you mean all of you aren’t guilty of your unpleasant attitudes?”

The cold voice seemingly turned colder.

“I waited for three seconds.”

“?”

“During that period and also before that period, none of you tried to stop that man even once.”

“――gh.”

It was about a gap of several seconds.

That wasn’t the period of her hesitating or the period when she tried to stay calm, but it was the period of time granted for the black stars to interfere with the situation. Gerald only realized that now.

“He is now a person of the duke family now, isn’t he? He is the second successor to the throne, but what of it? ――Be careful, even if you didn’t have such intention, that could be taken as a remark of His Highness Ferio unfit to succeed to the throne, you know?”

A successor to the throne living away from the royal family would be considered a spare. With Ferio as the first successor to the throne, using such words too often would make the speaker be considered as part of that faction.

“That man insulted Christina-sama.”

Perhaps out of Remiel calling Christina lightly as “that woman,” her voice when calling Remiel “that man” seemed to be filled with poison.

“According to the law, the fiancée of the first prince would be considered the quasi-royal family, and it is supposed to be the duty of your people to protect her, right? If things proceeded as is, that man’s attitude could be considered an accusation toward the person who would become the mother of the nation, yet you chose to let it slide because he is the second successor to the throne? Why? Does that mean you people have a similar opinion to that man?”

Her appearance as her eyes squinted in the shape of a crescent moon felt dignified like a lady instead of a girl, but words that came out of her mouth were more harmful than miasma.

That girl was calm and angry.

Toward Remiel――――and toward them.

“I’m asking you about that foolish behavior!!”

A shout roared like thunder.

“Anyone will do as long as they can give birth? Screw him!! There’s no replacement for her no matter how much you search all over the world! My beloved onee-sama is the one and only!!”

My beloved onee-sama?

In a tense atmosphere, a strange phrase suddenly flew.

“Christina onee-sama is nobler than a rose, graceful like a butterfly, and shines brighter than a jewel! He said there’s another like her in this world?! Bring her in front of me then!”

“Haah…?”

The remarks of this purple star girl were usually on point and filled with analytical points, but there were also many more incomprehensible remarks, and every time it happened, their brains were unable to understand despite trying to, leaving them confused.

Moreover, before they completely processed her words, the next one came, making their thoughts even more entangled.

“All of you entered the black star to become paladins, didn’t you?! You’re saying you had the aspiration to work in the royal court?! Don’t make me laugh, do you think such meager ability is enough to protect… onee…sama…”

Suddenly, the eyes of the purple star girl changed from wolf jumping at prey to that of a little rabbit.

Rather than regaining her calm, her expression was more like she was astonished by the important things she finally realized.

“――――What a thing to do… Why did I forget about such an important thing?!”

Sophie’s eyes went wide and she covered her face with both hands as if ashamed of her failure as she muttered. Just as they thought of that, the little animal suddenly turned around and ran.

“Sophie-sama?!”

Gerald called Sophie to stop, but her response was chilly eyes along with the command, “Don’t follow me!”

Seeing Sophie’s eyes sharpened like a blade and her expression seemed like she was clicking her tongue, Gerald was unable to proceed. It was Luca who chased after her instead.

Luca was a person whose agility was praised by Marcus, but he began to doubt that aspect when it came to chasing after Sophie. That was how desperate he tried to catch up to Sophie yet he couldn’t catch up with her.

“Sophie-sama, where are you going?!”

Even as Luca was filled with shock when he saw Sophie’s eyes when she looked at Gerald, he still asked.

“I’m going to visit the instructor of the black star!”

Sophie responded with her usual tone, but extraordinary determination could be felt somehow.

“Instructor of the black star…? Are you going there to protest?”

“Protest? There’s no way it would end with just that!”

Sophie stopped her feet and as she turned around, Sophie’s eyes were filled with terrible seriousness.

“Luca, I failed to notice a serious thing that ought to be my top priority. There’s nothing more disappointing than that!”

“Eh…? What do you mean by that?”

“Those men over there, regardless of if they end up as paladins upon graduation or not, would eventually work at the royal court!”

“I guess… you’re right.”

For the students of the black star, even if they failed the exam to be a paladin, they just lacked the paladin title but almost all of them still worked at the royal court. There was no precedent of black stars working as private escorts like copper stars did. Things might be different after their retirement, but even then, it was still small in number.

“Moreover, if they become paladins, that means they would be the people who would protect Christina onee-sama closer than anyone! You meant those things?! Those things would be entrusted to protect my onee-sama?!”

“Those things” seemed to refer to the whole student body of the black star, but the way she treated them was terrible.

Perhaps her vocabulary was lower than usual due to anger, Sophie kept repeating “those things” over and over in whispers. That appearance of her seemed like a shaman casting a suspicious curse.

“Sophie-sama…”

As Luca could do nothing but call her name, Sophie continued.

“I won’t let all of them keep the way they live as they are now―――!!”

At Sophie’s affirmation and bloodcurdling intensity, Luca couldn’t help but pity the black star despite being a copper star.

Author Note:

Onee-sama above all else!!!>>>>>(Wall that couldn’t be exceeded)>>>>> being groped.

There’s someone who guessed this event correctly in a comment beforehand. I laughed hard (*^-^*)

I received more comments than I expected, I feel scared (*^-^*)